Lest there remain any hope smoldering in wannabe-centrist hearts about Bush’s change of course on global warming, White House press flack Tony Snow put it decisively to rest yesterday, saying: "I want to walk you back from the whole carbon cap story … The carbon cap stuff is not accurate. It’s wrong."

And again: "If you’re talking about enforceable carbon caps, in terms of industry wide and nationwide, we knocked that down. That’s not something we’re talking about."

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This is something Iraq War critics have had to deal with for a long time, with great frustration — the constant, unshakeable belief that now, surely, Bush is going to see the error of his ways and shift to a more sensible, popular strategy. So too with global warming. I shall speak slowly:

This is George W. Bush we’re talking about.

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No matter how desperately you may pine for bipartisan comity and unity and "common sense," nothing in Bush’s record — nothing — indicates that he shares your fondness for such. Give it up. He’s not going to change course once he’s decided. Quit jumping at shadows. Figure out how to make progress without federal help. Move on.